Mixers
by MineAlone
Summary: One shot because I'm a very bad, very guilty updater. Just something I randomly thought of, and decided maybe it was better than the nothing I've been producing for the past year...


Gabriella felt physically ill. Leave it up to Sharpay Evans to come up with the worst mixer ever. Gabriella was fairly certain that the game had been instigated as a very distinctive way of making Gabriella feel out of place and uncomfortable. She was only here because Zeke insisted, and he had only insisted because his parents were friends with Gabriella's parents. She wasn't really friends with them – or anyone else in the wedding party. If she had it her way, she'd be alone in her apartment with indie tunes and nerdy hobbies. That was the way she liked it. She didn't have to pretend for anyone when she was alone.

"Okay, everyone," Sharpay's commanding voice startled her, reminding her of the present churning feeling in her stomach. "Do you understand the rules?" She didn't wait for a response, "I'll explain once more. Ladies on this side, men on that side. Take a good long look at one another, because you'll be kissing soon enough!" She laughed as if it was a joke, and Gabriella couldn't believe her first kiss was going to be at the will of the girl who had tormented her in high school.

Gabriella took a cautious glance to her left and right. Sharpay and Zeke had invited the bridesmaids and groomsmen to the wedding villa a few days before the wedding, because Sharpay was insistent they bond with one another. In the Ice Queen's words, she wouldn't have "…anyone ruining the most magical day of my life, because of petty interpersonal quarrels and unfulfilled sexual tensions." Gabriella was sure it was just a form of sadistic torture.

There were ten men and ten women, excluding the soon-to-be bride and groom. The rest of the female wedding party seemed completely at ease with this little game. They were giggling and looking the men over like prized possessions. Gabriella didn't want to look at them, and she didn't want them to look at her. Unfortunately for her, Sharpay was insistent that everyone participate.

"See anything you like," Sharpay whispered into Gabriella's ear, taking her off guard.

Gabriella flushed brightly, "I'm not really sure."

"Well, that's because you aren't looking. Get into the romantic spirit Gabriella! There are ten very attractive men here, and you get to choose one of them."

"They aren't a pair of shoes, Sharpay. I don't want to just _choose_ one of them. I don't even know them."

"Gabriella," Sharpay placed her hand on Gabriella's shoulder, and Gabriella couldn't tell if it was meant to be comforting or condescending. "It's going to be fine. It's just for fun. We're just taking a Sharpay approach to learning about one another. I want everyone to be friends." With that, she moved on to the next person.

Gabriella couldn't help but think that this wasn't the way she wanted to make friends. Then again, was she really an expert in the friendship department? Reluctantly she peaked up from beneath her lashes to scan the line of men across the room. They were all handsome, but what she noticed most about them was that none of them were looking at her. She wasn't surprised. She tended to have the uncanny ability to disappear when in the presence of others.

As she continued to scan their faces, with a bit more ease since she knew none of them would notice, she had to catch her breath upon seeing the bluest of eyes. Quiet appropriately, he was standing in the center of the line, laughing easily as he took his time smiling at the opposite sex. He was tall, and he had a boyish nature about him. Maybe it was the way his hair fell almost in his eyes, or maybe it was because of the dimple that appeared in his cheek when he grinned. Whatever it was, it made her ache in a familiar way.

"Time's up, people," Sharpay announced. "Fellas, put your blindfolds on. Ladies, take a slip of paper from Zeke." Everyone did as told. Gabriella's hand didn't feel like her own as she reached into the basket to pull out a folded sheet of paper.

"Ladies, unfold your paper, and number one step forward!" Sharpay was having too much fun with this, and as Gabriella looked down at the sparkly pink number staring back at her, she knew Sharpay's fun was about to increase. Her hand started to shake, and she was sure her face had drained of color.

"Excuse me, number one, step forward. You have to claim your kiss." Obediently, Gabriella stepped forward and looked at Sharpay unsurely. When the blonde realized that Gabriella was number one, she squealed and clapped her hands in delight, before rushing to Gabriella and hugging her.

"This mixer is the best idea I've ever had! Go ahead. Pick a guy to kiss, and take his name card."

Gabriella nodded, but continued to stand in the middle of the floor hesitantly. Her first kiss. It wasn't going to be with someone she loved, or even liked, but really, what did she have to lose? It had been twenty-four years and she had yet to find someone worth kissing. This might be her only chance, and she certainly knew who she wanted to kiss, but she also didn't want to kiss him. He'd be disappointed. She knew that, and she didn't know if her pride could take that. Her time was running out, though. She had to kiss someone. Sharpay was obviously getting impatient.

She walked up to the handsome man, and heard a collective sign of disappointment from the girls behind her. Apparently she wasn't the only one who had wanted to choose him. He was taller than she had anticipated. Even in heels she would have to tilt her head up in order to reach his lips. Taking a deep breath, she placed a hand gently on his chest in order to stable herself as she reached up to press her lips to his. It lasted no more than a few seconds, and if not for the smirk that graced his features, she wouldn't have known if she'd really kissed him.

"Take his name card," Sharpay instructed loudly. "How else will he know if he chooses the right girl?"

Gabriella slipped her hand into his, taking the slip of paper from him, but she gasped when she felt him take ahold of her hand. He chuckled and let her go. She didn't look at his name until she was safely back in the line of bridesmaids, and then she couldn't stop looking. _Troy Bolton_

Troy hadn't been sure what to expect when Zeke had told him that the wedding party needed to come to the villa a few days before the actual wedding, and that Sharpay _insisted_. If he remembered anything about his cousin, it was that he was a pushover. It seemed that he fit well into the role of Sharpay's husband. Whatever he had expected, it wasn't to be lip locking as a mixer. He hadn't done anything like this since middle school when everyone's hormones had been raging. Turns out, twenty-four wasn't much different from fourteen. Everyone just had a few more brain cells and a little bit more self-regulation. He would go along with it, though. If this is what Sharpay wanted, then he wasn't going to complain about being kissed by a pretty girl. To win the game, he'd have to figure out who she was, though. He only had once chance. Once the blindfolds were off, he'd have to choose one of the bridesmaids and hope that it was his name that she was holding.

She was short. He knew that. He could feel her presence in front of him. He also knew that she smelled amazing. She smelled just like jasmine. Both her lips and her hand had been soft. Hopefully, that would be enough information to figure out who she was.

"Blindfolds off!" Sharpay yelled. "It's time for you to scope out the lady that you were lucky enough to be kissed by."

Troy had a general idea of who it might have been. The cutest strawberry blonde had winked at him before they had put their blindfolds on. She also happened to fit the stature of the girl who had kissed him. As he got ready to approach her, he realized that someone else was just about to beat him to her…and he did. The guy he'd learned was Jason Cross made his way directly to the girl that Troy's eyes had been set upon. Now he literally had no other options. He'd spent so much time thinking it through, that he was now realizing that his calculated response may not have been the best approach. Something was throwing him off, though. Weren't the numbers equal? He was sure there were ten bridesmaids and ten groomsmen. It took scanning the line twice before he finally located the girl no one had seemed to notice. She was looking down at the slip of paper that held someone's name. He watched her run a graceful finger over the letters. Her dark curls shielded the majority of her face from his view, but he was sure she was pretty.

Having little other option, he approached her. It wasn't until he was standing directly in front of her that she looked up. Her eyes went wide, and her rosy mouth fell open. It was then that Troy realized he had been wrong. She wasn't pretty. She was breath-taking. He had never seen someone so doe-eyed. Nervously she handed him the slip of paper.

"You're choosing me?" She seemed completely at a loss.

Troy smiled at seeing his name on her paper, and that was when the scent of jasmine infiltrated his senses. "Well, it looks like you chose me too."

She played with the ends of her long hair, "But I thought you'd be disappointed. I didn't think you'd choose me too."

Her truthful, painful words pierced him. Was he disappointed? He had been at first, when he'd realized she was his only option. But that was only because he thought the strawberry blonde had kissed him.

"Why would I be disappointed?"

She flushed bright red and shrugged one shoulder before biting the corner of her inferior lip. "I…I just thought you might…I mean, all the girls here are so beautiful, and you're so handsome, and I just thought…"

"Thanks for kissing me." He interrupted. "I wasn't sure that anyone would want to. You got to pick first, and you picked me." It wasn't entirely a lie, and even if it was, what was the harm in saving her some self-inflicted embarrassment?

Before either of them could say anything else, Sharpay's voice pierced the room, "If you found your match, step forward for your prize!"

"Shall we?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded, but jumped when she realized he was holding her hand.

Two other couples stepped forward, but Gabriella couldn't really concentrate on anything but the feeling of her hand swallowed by his. It was rough and warm, but oddly comforting. She'd never held hands with anyone before.

"Winners get Visa gift cards that are good basically anywhere," Sharpay trotted along, handing out tiny pink bags with glittery S's embossed on them. "Now it's time for dinner. Find your actual match and sit beside him or her." Sharpay bossed.

"What's your name?" Troy asked over dinner.

"Gabriella."

"Are you a friend of Sharpay's or a friend of Zeke's?"

"Neither," Gabriella answered bluntly. "Sharpay used to be really awful to me in high school, and I've never really spoken to Zeke except for a handful of times. Our parents are friends, though. His dad goes golfing with my dad."

"Really? His dad is my uncle."

Unlike most people, Gabriella didn't look at him quizzically when he said that. She just nodded before turning back to her meal."

"His family adopted me," Troy felt the need to explain. "My parents were in a car accident when I was eight."

She turned back to him then, her soft brown eyes full of emotions, "I'm so sorry." She slipped her hand into his. She wasn't really sure why, but she felt like she needed it as much as he did. Why was he telling her this?

"It's okay. I've got a nice family, now, and a nice family from by biological parents."

As she stared up at him, Troy couldn't quite believe that it had taken a happy accident for him to have met her.

"It's good to be loved by lots of people."

"There's something odd about you, Gabriella."

Her face flashed a bit of hurt, and she tried to discretely pull her hand from his.

"No, that's not what I mean," Troy's voice softened, and he wouldn't let go of her hand. Subconsciously, he turned his body towards hers so that they were sitting closer together. "I meant something peculiar, something special. I don't know what it is. I like it. A lot actually."

She blushed.

"There it is," Troy grinned. "That. Whatever that just was."

"I didn't do anything," Gabriella answered honestly.

"Yes, you did, "Troy assured.


End file.
